Young Writers Society

"We don't-" Nathaniel started to say, but Estella Fay returned before he could finish his sentence. He let out a sigh instead.

"Great," I said, with a smirk. I looked back at Hev, smirk faltering a little. "And I don't attack people because of their powers. Not unless they attack me first."

Which, admittedly, happened quite often thanks to the person I was possessing right now.

“Well, no one will attack you first here.” Estella Fay smiled. “Now quickly. On the bed.”

The doctor nodded, Achebe. That was her name. “I’m just going to take a quick look. Your friend will be right as rain in now time.” Her thick Ethiopian accent rumbled through the room as she patted the bed.

We brought my body over to the bed and put it down as requested. I would have just dumped it there, but Nathaniel actually put it down with some degree of care.

Then he took a large step back. Even after all of the first aid Asmira had shown us—and done for us—he was still awkward around spaces like this. He wasn't exactly scared of them, but it was clear he didn't know what to do with himself in the space.

Not that I really did, either. The only places like this I had been in were Bickerstaff's experiment rooms, and that...was a different kind of place. Just thinking of him made my expression go dark for a moment.

Achebe gently inspected Skull’s body. “I’m going to remove this, alright?” She gestured to the… very strange jacket on him.

Estella Fay shuffled to Nathaniel’s side. “What… what is that? It’s all… hard.” She frowned. “Looks awfully stiff.”

Achebe gently removed the whatever-it-was jacket and gently handed it to Nathaniel. “Saturn can most likely repair this. He’s incredibly talented.”

Saturn nodded. “I can try.”

I smirked. Their reactions to my jacket reminded me of how Asmira had first reacted to seeing one. She wasn't used to the material, either.

"It's a leather jacket," I said. "And if you can't fix the tear, I'll just get a new one."

I eyed the jacket.

"...Then again," I mused, "the tear and the bloodstains does make it seem more intimidating..."

Nathaniel let out a mental groan.

Saturn groaned. “Oh god, he sounds like Cyra.”

I frowned slightly. “But… you love Cyra.”

He nodded. “Which is exactly why I’m allowed to say that another Cyra would be awful.”

Achebe turned Skull’s body on its side to inspect the stab wound. “Nasty wound here. Serrated blade. They wanted to kill your friend.”

I snorted.

"That's not surprising," I said. "We're not the most liked people around."

They had probably wanted to kill Nathaniel, but I just had the unfortunate luck of being there at the time. That was the danger of traveling with him and Asmira.

Saturn snorted. “Well, welcome to the international capitol of the not-most-liked people around. It’s our brand.”

I nodded. “Anyone you can think of who is… largely frowned upon by the greater society is here. So, welcome home, really.”

Achebe chuckled. “I’m going to remove his shirt, okay?”

I shrugged.

"Sure," I said. Nathaniel held his breath, for a moment. He had seen the scars I had underneath my shirt. He had been there for almost all of the newer ones, too, which probably didn't help. But I wasn't going to be thrown off when the doctor removed my shirt and showed off the scars that littered my my chest and abdomen.

I already knew what I'd see. Some were a faint white, while others were much more recent. The newest ones were the little nick up by my collarbone and the long one running down my abdomen, but the one that brought back some fond memories was the tiny one on my right side.

Achebe nodded and slowly stripped away Skull’s blood soaked shirt. The wound on his side was obvious now, oozing blood.

And he had scars. Scars all over his chest and stomach. Saturn held me a little tighter. Estella Fay made a small noise of distress and fidgeted with her gloves, all where her own scars lay behind the torn fabric. And I…

I rested my hands on my stomach and imagined how similar we must look shirtless. How we were both maps of violent lives and bloodshed. So much pain. Achebe didn’t react. At least not outwardly. She had probably seen hundreds of tapestries like that. After a while you just… stop reacting.

"Hope that one leaves a scar," I said.

"Skull," Nathaniel said, seeming to forget that the doctor probably didn't know we were two people sharing one body right now. She also, admittedly, probably didn't know that I was the one who owned the body that was on display right now.

"What?" I said, crossing my arms. "I haven't gotten any good ones in a bit. Now, if only the little head trauma I got was more of a gash than a whack. I still haven't been able to get a nice, gruesome face scar yet."

Achebe glanced at Estella Fay. She waved her hand dismissively. “They’re fine. Don’t mind them.” She laughed nervously, glancing at Skull and Nathaniel.

Saturn sighed. “It’s… complicated.”

“It’s possession.” I shrugged. “The one on the bed has the ability to possess others. That’s all.”

"That's me," I said, "in the flesh. Well, Natty boy's flesh."

"It's Nathaniel," Nathaniel said, giving that smile he did when he was trying to be all business. I rolled my eyes at it. It was hard to take him seriously when he acted like that, knowing what he was like when he didn't.

Achebe just nodded. “Okay.” I had never seen her phased. But maybe that was just because of the sheer amount of odd things she’d had to see. From being suddenly introduced to the idea that Ukayans freely existed, to the idea that alis had magic powers. The Mist was used to oddities.

Achebe gently brought a bowl of water and a washcloth. “I’m just going to wash the wounds.”

I shrugged.

"I don't have a problem with it," I said. Nathaniel turned away, either not wanting to see the first aid or the old scars, but I turned my head back to look as the doctor cleaned my body. I was fascinated by it, despite myself. I couldn't break the ties that bound me to Bickerstaff even in death.